The Circular
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Steph Lewis spoke on violence to MPs
Former Whanganui Member of Parliament Steph Lewis spoke on Tuesday 13 February 2024 at a regular meeting of the Whanganui NCWNZ branch. After a general summary of the history and goals of the National Council of Women as well as an overview on women in parliament today, we introduced Lewis. Carla Donson Manager of the Women's Network then put questions to Steph and it felt more like a conversation about her experiences and reflections being an MP. Lewis focused on coping... -
Milestones: Wāhine who signed Te Tiriti o Waitangi
Archives New Zealand has documented as much as we know so far about some of the wāhine who signed Te Tiriti o Waitangi in 1840. This was unusual because so many indigenous leaders signed alongside representatives of the British Crown, making New Zealand significant in women's history. Despite the images circulating today about the historic Waitangi treaty depicting crowds of men, women were present in leadership roles. Even the beach at the Waitangi Treaty Grounds was traditionally named after a... -
NCWNZ at UN International Holocaust Remembrance Day
Photo from Wikipedia of Soviet Union Red Army soldiers talking to the children just liberated from the Auschwitz concentration camp in January 1945. The boy on the left was telling the soldiers how to identify the surviving Nazi guards hiding in prisoner clothes. Nazis had swastikas tattooed under their left armpits. In 2005 the United Nations designated January 27th the anniversary of the 1945 liberation of the Auschwitz II-Birkenau concentration camp and crematoria as International Holocaust Remembrance Day. Since then,... -
NCWNZ oral submission to expand laws supporting victims of family violence
On 1 February 2024, Bernice Williams of the NCWNZ Health, Safety & Wellbeing Action Hub presented an oral submission to the Parliament's Justice Committee | Komiti Take Ture who are working on expanding the courts' power to better protect the victims of family violence in Legislation Bill 285-1. The members of the Justice Committee who heard the submission were: James Meager (Chair, National); Todd Stephenson (ACT); Marama Davidson (Green); Ginny Anderson (Labour); Dr Duncan Webb (Labour); and, Tracey McLellan (Labour). The recording with... -
In Memoriam: Audrey Jarvis
Photo of Audrey Jarvis submitted by Anne McCarthy with the permissionof the Jarvis family. The Manawatu Branch of the National Council of Women of New Zealand (NCWNZ) mourns the death on 22 January 2024 of a loved and valued long-term member, Audrey Jarvis. In 2004, Audrey became the Methodist Church’s delegate to the Manawatu Branch NCWNZ which she, like all of us, referred to as NCW. She was soon elected to the Branch executive, then to the vice presidency and in... -
Chart: 2024 New Year honours
There were 151 honours award in the 2024 New Years list. Men received 50% with 76, women received 49% (74) and transgender 1% (1). Of the higher awards (ONZ to MNZM) women received 52% (56), men 47% (50) and transgender 1% (1). This was because women received 61% (30) of the ONZMs compared with men receiving 37% (18) and transgender 2% (1). -
President’s Kōrero, December 2023
Tēnā tātou katoa, Every time I have sat down to write this kōrero for you, NCWNZ members, I have been pulled away by something else that arrives in my email! Often it is an invitation to be involved with a group or event that aligns with our kaupapa, which is a positive sign. An example is our recent invitation to meet with the Commission of Inquiry for COVID-19: lessons learnt. I attended this meeting with VP Betty Ofe-Grant, Raewyn Stone,... -
Health Action Hub Supporting Action on Endometriosis
The NCWNZ Safety, Health and Wellbeing Action Hub valued having two speakers on endometriosis at its last meeting for 2023. Endometriosis affects about 1 in 10 NZ women with a huge impact on lives. Supporting education, resources and a national plan for endometriosis is consistent with our support for a life-course approach to women’s health that was outlined in the submission the Hub prepared on a Women’s Health Strategy as part of the Pae Ora (Healthy Futures) legislation. -
Election Outcomes for Women 2023
Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke, Hauraki-Waikato The 2023 election result has brought new women into Parliament but sadly not in sufficient numbers to reach equality. Final election results show that there will be 123 seats in Parliament, instead of the usual 120. The overhang is caused by (a) Te Pāti Māori winning more electorate seats than it would otherwise from its share of the party vote, and (b) result of the Waikato by-election. This increased total representation for Te Pāti Māori marks the... -
NCWNZ at Melbourne Cup 2023
On the 7th of November, the Australian High Commission invited NCWNZ to celebrate the Melbourne Cup during their annual fundraiser event. The event was attended by Suzanne Manning, President of NCWNZ, Harita Gandhi, treasurer of the Wellington Branch, and Rayane Al Faraj, intern for NCWNZ.